Here in the high school we believe in giving students opportunities to participate in a rich and diverse learning environment where passions can be pursued and new interests explored. Learning and teaching at ISM is focused on standards that define what students need to know and do. By teaching for understanding we promote inquiry and essential questions surrounding a set of transferable and foundational ‘big ideas’. Our goal is to nurture learners to feel proud of their accomplishments and view themselves as contributors to ISM’s culture of understanding.

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HS Friday Bulletin February 22

Last Friday and Saturday, I was lucky enough to help
chaperone 39 wonderful Grade 11 students on the Environmental Systems and
Societies (ESS) and Geography overnight field trip to GK Enchanted Farm up in
Bulacan. We visited 3 dams and enjoyed
some lectures from the engineers about their construction. The students took water samples and measured
temperature, pH levels and turbidity in the dam water. Then at GK, they were able
to see some of the agri-preneur (agriculture / entrepreneur) schemes that GK
graduates are involved with. Look out
for some of these products in Rustans or the Saturday market in Salcedo – the
chili-ginger hot sauce (Hot Mama!) is excellent. Well done and thank-you to Ms. Govier and Ms.
Bowers for their organization of the trip.

Last week, the Grade 10 students have enjoyed the
peace and calm of the American Cemetery as they connect the reality of war with
their current unit. Thanks to Robert
Butcher and the rest of the English 10 team for organizing these short
excursions.

Each evening this week, we have been treated to the previews of all the Cultural Convention (CulCon) students’ work as they prepare for next week’s trips:the Musicians (Strings, Band and Choir) travel to Jakarta;the Dance / Drama / Film / Art and Tech students are off to Bangkok;and the Debate / Forensics teams will do their thing in Taipei

Thanks to the many teachers involved in both the
preparation and the trip – particularly as they are giving up a part of their
February break to travel with the students.
Good luck everyone.

After the break, on Tuesday, March 5th, we
will have our Parent Coffee in the Little Theater. While the agenda is not completely finalized,
I can say that the main theme of the coffee will be a Cultural Convention
celebration; I hope to have as many of the performances as I can in all areas
of CulCon to give parents a taste of the different aspects of CulCon and to
appreciate the level of expertise that our IASAS delegates achieve.

Also on March 5th, from 7:30am – 12pm, Mr.
Trevor Sturgeon will be on campus to answer questions about TS College Tours,
which offers organized college tours in the US, Canada and the UK. ISM students
who participated in the past give the program all positive reviews. https://www.tscollegetours.com. Email: tsturgeon@tscollegetours.com

Looking further ahead, the Grade 12 IB mock exams are scheduled to run from March 14th to 22nd. Here is the schedule. Other students (mainly Grade 9 and 10) who are studying AP English Literature and Composition and/or AP Human Geography and/or AP United States History also have their mock AP exams during this same block of time, so please do check your child’s courses and compare them against the schedule.

And with that, I wish you all a restful, relaxing and
well-deserved break.